Flying Yankees can complete sweep on Boston Red Sox

Starting pitchers gives Bronx Bombers edge over big rivals

Veteran CC Sabathia has a 1.39 Earned Run Average in 2018 so far for the Yankees

Getty Images

1 of
1

By Stephen Morgan
12:48PM, MAY 10 2018

Boston Red Sox at NY YankeesBT Sport ESPN, midnight Thursday

There has never been a more exciting time to be a baseball fan in the UK, with the announcement this week that the Red Sox and the Yankees are due to play two regular-season games at the London Stadium in June 2019. And punters can have a look at what they are in store for next summer on TV at midnight on Thursday when Boston head to the Big Apple for the third and final match of their series against the Bronx Bombers.

The Yankees have been in blistering form since a slowish start to the season and have smashed their way into contention for the AL East after winning eight straight and a remarkable 17 out of 18.

There is little between the teams - New York have just one win more - while their run differential and underlying stats (hits, walks, home runs etc) all suggest that these teams are close in ability.

Where the home team have the edge is in the starting pitchers. Veteran CC Sabathia is almost certainly flattered by his 1.39 Earned Run Average in 2018 - it will probably have climbed to nearer 3.5-4 by the end of the season - and although the considerably younger 25-year-old Eduardo Rodriguez has yet to be on the losing side this season, he has received a monster amount of run support, and his ERA of 5.62 is fairly ugly.

The Yankees' bullpen have been excellent too, and are the only set of relief staff in MLB with a Fielding Independent ERA of less than four.

All things considered, home advantage should be enough for New York to complete the sweep their AL East rivals in this series.